In a world of rising work expectations, MiHCM is deploying AI agents to unlock smarter, faster, and more human ways of working
If you’ve ever felt like there simply aren’t enough hours in the workday, you’re not alone. Microsoft’s latest Work Trend Index (WTI) exposes a widening capacity gap in Malaysia, with 83% of the workforce – both employees and leaders – saying they lack enough time and energy to do their best work.
Fortunately, AI agents are quickly becoming the newest additions to the workplace, and Malaysia is ready. These smart digital teammates help teams think, plan, and act more efficiently. In fact, 86% of Malaysian leaders plan to integrate AI agents within 18 months.
The report also highlights a new wave of ‘Frontier Firms’. These are companies already combining human talent with AI to move faster, adapt quicker, and create more value. With strong confidence and momentum, Malaysia is set to lead the way in the AI-powered future of work.
One standout example is MiHCM, among Asia’s leading HR tech providers. Headquartered in Malaysia and serving 20+ markets from the Philippines to Sri Lanka, MiHCM is helping HR teams move beyond administrative tasks by leveraging AI to deliver deeper workforce insights, improve talent engagement, and align people strategies with business outcomes.
Backlog to breakthrough: automating support at scale
MiHCM’s all-in-one HR platform had already enabled organizations across sectors like finance, healthcare, and technology to manage hiring, payroll, performance, and analytics in one seamless environment. But as user support queries grew, so did the need for on-demand intelligence, delivered at scale.
It all started with a simple yet powerful insight: a large portion of user support tickets involved basic, repetitive queries. “We saw a pattern in the types of questions coming in: users weren’t struggling with technical complexity, they just needed quick help performing everyday tasks or navigating the platform,” said Harsha Purasinghe, Group CEO, MiHCM.
“That’s where we thought AI could step in and help make a real difference.”
But instead of simply bolting on a chatbot, MiHCM rearchitected its entire support experience by leveraging Microsoft’s full agentic AI stack – Semantic Kernel (Agent Framework), Azure OpenAI (LLM), Azure AI Search (Vector Search), Azure SQL Server (QnA Knowledge Base), and Azure Functions (Integration to the application). The result? A 24/7 AI assistant that feels less like tech, and more like a trusted teammate.
Today, the MiHCM Agentic Support App handles first-level support in real-time, interpreting queries, guiding users through tasks, and resolving basic usability issues that once made up a large chunk of the support team’s backlog.
Building AI systems that empower, not replace humans
Powered by Microsoft’s stack of agentic AI solutions – including GPT-4o-mini for natural conversations, Azure AI Search for precise information retrieval, and Semantic Kernel’s Agent Framework – MiHCM’s solution enables users to type questions in everyday language and receive clear, immediate answers, without ever leaving the platform.
“The support agent understands natural language, engages in real conversation, and only escalates to human agents when necessary, eliminating the frustration of traditional automated systems,” explained Harsha.
And it’s working. In just the first two months, MiHCM’s AI agent handled over 750 queries and reduced support ticket volume for basic issues by nearly 40%, freeing up valuable time for human talents to focus on more complex, high-value technical support.
This impact reflects a core trait of Frontier Firms: the ability to use AI to augment, not replace, human capability – empowering teams to move faster, think bigger, and spend time on what matters most. “We’re not just using AI to build smarter tools, we’re also building better ways of working,” said the CEO.
Shaping the agentic workplace of tomorrow
The launch of the Agentic Support App is only the beginning of MiHCM’s journey with AI agents. Over the next 12 months, the company plans to roll out a series of enhancements designed to further increase intelligence, coverage, and business impact. As the assistant continues to evolve, it won’t just provide help but proactively shape smarter workflows, improve user engagement, and serve as a strategic differentiator for MiHCM in Asia’s competitive HR tech landscape.
For organizations navigating today’s capacity crunch, MiHCM’s approach makes a powerful case: AI agents aren’t just digital tools, they’re a new kind of teammate. This underscores a broader trend observed in the WTI: employees in Malaysia only turn to AI to access capabilities humans can’t provide, such as 24/7 availability (44%), machine-driven speed and quality (35%), and unlimited ideas on demand (31%).
The future of work is getting a glow-up
Humans were never meant to spend their days on repetitive, manual tasks. Just as tools like Word and Excel transformed work decades ago, AI agents are now reshaping how we work by pairing human insight with intelligent automation. Frontier Firms like MiHCM are leading this shift. By using AI to free up time, surface insights, and enhance decision-making, they are setting the pace for what modern HR can achieve. The impact is clear: 92% of Frontier Firm employees in Malaysia say they are doing meaningful work, and 58% feel ready to take on more, well above regional benchmarks.
The momentum is building. Forty-four percent of Malaysian leaders say scaling capacity with AI agents is a top priority over the next 12 to 18 months. Many are already planning new roles such as AI trainers and workforce managers to support this shift. All signs point to the same conclusion: the agentic era has begun. The question is not whether AI will change the way we work, but how quickly we are ready to lead that change. MiHCM’s journey shows that those who start early and empower their people will be the ones who stay ahead.
